The document discusses lessons that can be learned from geese flying in formation. It notes that geese flying together increase their flying range by 71% compared to flying alone due to drafting. It also discusses how geese stick together and help other geese that fall out of formation or get injured. The lessons highlighted are about sharing leadership, encouraging each other, and supporting each other. Successful teams in various organizations are also briefly discussed and characteristics of effective teams are listed.

1. The Essence of Survival
Every morning in
Africa,
a Gazelle wakes up.
It knows it must run
faster
than the fastest lion
or it will be killed . . .

2. The Fittest chasing the Fit
Every morning a
Lion wakes up. It
knows it must outrun
the slowest
Gazelle or it will
starve to death.
It doesn’t matter
Whether you are a
lion or a Gazelle…
When the sun comes
up, you’d better be
running.

3. Lessons from the Geese
In the areas of our
country where geese
are very common,
they can be seen
arriving in the fall and
leaving early in the
spring. Their
migration is an
awesome sight. There
is an interdependence
in the way the geese
function.

4. Lessons from the Geese
FACT: As each bird flaps its wings, it creates
an “up lift” for the bird following. By flying in a
“V” formation, the whole flock adds 71%
greater flying range than if each bird flew
alone.
LESSON: People who share a common
direction and a sense of community can get
where they are going quicker and easier
because they are traveling on the thrust of
one another.

5.  FACT: Whenever a goose falls out of
formation, it suddenly feels the drag
and resistance of trying to fly alone. It
quickly gets back into formation to take
advantage of the lifting power of the
bird immediately in front.
 LESSON: If we have as much sense
as a goose, we will stay in formation
with those who are headed where we
want to go.

6.  FACT: When the lead goose gets tired, it
rotates back into the formation and
another goose flies at the point position.
 LESSON: It pays to take turns doing the
hard tasks and sharing leadership.
People, as with geese, are interdependent
with each other.
 FACT: The geese in formation honk from
behind to encourage those up front to
keep up their speed.
 LESSON: We need to make sure our
honking from behind is encouraging.

7.  FACT: When a goose gets sick or
wounded or shot down, two geese drop
out of formation to follow him down to
help and protect him. They stay with him
until he is either able to fly again or dies.
Then they launch out on their own with
another formation or catch up with their
flock.
 LESSON: If we have as much sense as the
geese, we will stand together.

8. Successful Teams
• Teams at Motorola produced
its best cellular phones
• Team Taurus developed
Ford’s best selling automobile
• Team Saturn produced the
Saturn automobile

9. • Teams at 3M generate hundreds
of innovations to keep 3M ahead
of its competitors. Teams literally
manage the whole business.
• Chrysler used cross-functional
team to develop its small car
Neon without any foreign
collaboration (it became the first
American company to do so)

10. • Hallmark cards in Kansas city –
Writers, artists, production
specialists join with employees
from manufacturing, graphic
artists, sales & distribution work
on everything from developing
new-product ideas to improving
customer deliveries.

11. • Boeing 777 was built by
“Design-Build” teams.
• In 1960, IBM created a large
task force to create system 360
which was a huge success
• Government of Singapore
introduced WIT (work
improvement teams) as part of
national effort to improve man-
management and productivity.

12. Characteristics of Effective Teams
 Clear Purpose
 Informality
 Participation
 Consensus Decision Making
 Civilized Disagreement
 Shared Leadership
 Open Communications
 Listening
 Clear Roles & Work Assignments